Strawberry Crumble Courtesy of Elise Russ, Co-Owner/Pastry Chef of Clementine
We love all of the foods, flavors, and fantastic options available when it comes to dining out in San Antonio. It’s no secret that our restaurant scene is hot. Picking a spot to enjoy can be challenging—not because you can’t figure out where to go, but because you want to go everywhere and taste everything.
To help with that, we’re asking some of our favorite local culinary folks to share recipes with us to feature in our Alamo City Moms TASTE series, where we’ll give you the scoop on how to make desserts, drinks, and more for those nights you want to date night in or just treat yo’self. And because we’re believers in eating dessert first, we’re kicking things off with a fruit crumble from Elise Russ, Co-Owner/Pastry Chef of Clementine, the restaurant she and husband John Russ opened to rave reviews in 2018.
If you’ve been to Clementine, you’ll understand why it was listed as one of “The Best New Restaurants in Texas for 2019” by Texas Monthly and has been named in San Antonio Magazine’s “Best of the City.” And one of Elise’s fantastic desserts was included in Texas Monthly’s list of best foods they tried in 2018. If you haven’t been to Clementine, check out Texas Lifestyle Magazine’s peek at dinner. The restaurant serves lunch too; the menu is updated seasonally; the specials are divine; and the wine list is fabulous.
We’ve introduced you to Elise before. She’s a fellow San Antonio mom—now times two, thanks to the arrival of Ruby Anne, who joined the world on Pi Day. We can’t imagine a more appropriate birthday for the daughter of a pastry chef! And we are so grateful to Elise for finding time to share this terrific recipe while juggling a baby, a toddler, AND a restaurant.
“I love this crumble topping recipe because it can be used with any kind of fruit crumble depending on the season. You can also make it and freeze it and thaw in the refrigerator overnight for a quick dessert the next day,” explains Elise.
She also notes that if you’re not a strawberry fan, jump in and try it with your favorite fruit. “The filling recipe is very versatile—the best way to make a crumble filling is to taste the fruit, then season with sugar and spice to taste. Fruit changes so much based on the time of year and where it comes from, so I don’t like to use a set recipe because it can result in an overly sweet or very tart dessert. Have fun experimenting with different fruit, spices, and nut combinations!”
We love strawberries, but now we’re also thinking peaches, apples, and more. Let us know what your favorite is and tell how you made your crumble!
Elise’s recipe is listed below. You’ll see “by weight” and “by volume” on the crumble topping ingredients. As the fantastic pro that she is, Elise measures her ingredients by weight and uses a scale, which we imagine is really helpful when you’re making this for restaurant full of folks. For those of us moms who rely on measuring cups (and are grateful we don’t have that many mouths to feed) Alamo City Moms Blog converted the recipe to the by volume version below. Both versions are included on the handy recipe card that you can download for easy use, too. Happy Baking!
Clementine’s Strawberry Crumble
Crumble Topping 
Ingredients, by weight:
- 4.5 oz. oats
- 9 oz. all-purpose flour
- 6 oz. granulated sugar
- 6 oz. brown sugar
- 2 oz. nuts (can use any variety such as pecan pieces, sliced almonds, walnuts, etc.)
- 7 oz. cold butter
- 1/2 Tbsp. salt
Ingredients, by volume:
- 1.5 c. oats
- 2 c. flour
- 3/4 c. granulated sugar
- 3/4 c. brown sugar
- 1/2 c. nuts
- 2 sticks of butter
Instructions:
- Put oats, flour, both sugars, nuts, and salt into a mixing bowl with a paddle attachment and mix until combined.
- Cube cold butter and add to the dry ingredients.
- Mix until it resembles coarse sand. Note: You do NOT want this to form a dough—that means it’s over-mixed.
Strawberry Filling
Ingredients:
- 1 qt. fresh strawberries
- 2 tsp. cinnamon
- granulated sugar (to taste)
- all-purpose flour (as needed)
Instructions:
- Remove stems and cut strawberries into quarters.
- Taste strawberries and season with granulated sugar based on sweetness (about ¼–½ cup).
- Toss strawberries with cinnamon and 1 tablespoon of flour. Note: Only use flour if the strawberries are really juicy.
- Put strawberries in a greased 8″ square pan and cover with the crumble topping. Note: You can use as much or as little crumble topping as you like.
- Bake at 350°F until strawberries are bubbling around the edges and the topping is golden brown (about 15–20 minutes).
- Serve warm with vanilla bean ice cream.
